Still, it’s unusual for a company to offer over $800 in free software, even for a limited time.  That’s beyond generous and it begs the question … why?  I’ve always purchased most of my accessories from Renderosity and RuntimeDNA.  Both sites have a larger variety and better prices (outside of Platinum Club items).  I went to DAZ for the figures, because they are the best.  When they made the decision to fuse their figures with their software, I made the decision to drop DAZ.  The big giveaway makes me think I’m not the only one.

The whole thing smacks of a last ditch effort to lure users away from Poser.  If they get enough of us to switch, well they won’t have to keep working with Smith Micro to make Genesis work in Poser.  This strategy might be successful with recruiting new users, who have little experience with any software, but I don’t see it working for old dogs like me.  I downloaded all three of the giveaway programs just because they were free, not because I intend to use them.

Still, if I get some free time I might play around with DAZ Studio for awhile, just to see what it can do.  I reserve the right to change my mind.

Last month I ended the Platinum Club membership that I’ve held since it was founded, because they no longer produce enough products that I can use to make the monthly cost worth while.  (Now, I use that money for my Netflix membership instead.) My money and my time are invested in Poser, not DAZ Studio.  I don’t know how to use it and frankly, I don’t want to learn.  Not to mention the fact that DS4 is cost prohibitive to me, and perhaps a lot of others in this recession.

My budget is limited, and so I chose to buy the latest version of Poser, because I like Poser.  It’s familiar. I know exactly how to make it do what I want it to.  I’ve tried using the earlier, free, versions of DS, and gave up after about an hour.  The renders I got out of it were not significantly different from Poser, and customization was a lot harder to do.  I’ve been using Poser since version 4, and I’m very comfortable with how it works.  My time is limited these days as well, and I’d rather spend that time making art, not learning how to use a new program before I can make art.

The part that irks me is that DAZ makes the best Poser figures, bar none.  The figures that came with Poser were very limited when I first started using it, so I started using Victoria & Michael from DAZ.  Obviously most other users did the same, because almost all of the accessories available for purchase on 3D sites everywhere are for DAZ figures.  And therein lies the root of my resentment.  I’m as invested in DAZ figures as I am in Poser.  Fortunately, even months after the debut of Genesis and V5, vendors at most of the 3D accessory sites are still making products for the Poser friendly V4.  That tells me that I’m not the only one who has turned up her virtual nose at DAZ and Genesis.

My resentment was eased somewhat when someone explained to me that Genesis is a technology framework that allows V5 to work, not a type of figure.  I recognize the right of DAZ to develop its own 3D platform to compete with Poser.  I just think it’s a bit foolish to ignore the fact that the majority of its customers are Poser users.  The evolutionary aspects of the Genesis technology is outweighed by the lack of popularity of DAZ Studio as a platform.  Greed seems to be the  motivating factor for DAZ given that the price of DS4 is much higher than previous pay versions of the software.

Apparently DAZ is aware of their error, and they are currently working with Smith Micro, the makers of Poser, to come up with a way for Genesis to work in Poser.  When that happens, I’ll renew my membership with DAZ 3D.  In the mean time, I can get 3rd party accessories that will work with V4 on other sites.

We do it a bit differently here at Sralos Fantasy. My gaming partner and I more or less lift our characters from one story line and drop them into an entirely new one. The characters do not just suddenly appear in a strange new world, rather they’ve always lived in that world. They’re not even the same people they were in the previous story line. We started doing this, because while we never really get bored with our characters, we do tire of the situations they’re in. And rather than come up with some plot device to explain the change, we’ve adopted more of a do-over type policy. We play until we get bored, then we start again with something new. Our story line methodology isn’t for everyone, but it’s been working for us for almost 7 years now.

You’ll see the same character names again and again. There will always be a Jack and an Olivia.  Other names we use frequently are Arthur as Olivia’s father, and Edward as the villain.  It’s a lot easier to keep the names and character types for NCPs, rather than having to come up with something new every time we change SLs.  Edward isn’t always overtly trying to destroy the heroes, but he is always an unsympathetic character.  He can be anything from an indifferent husband to an over-bearing boss.  Richard is our young side-kick character.  He’s usually a brother or a best-friend, and almost always sympathetic. You get the idea.

That’s the basics of our methodology.  Hopefully this will help to explain the sudden SL changes.

Free Form role playing is improvisational story telling. Each player has a character or characters and those characters interact with others belonging to other players.

Each player decides the actions and fate of his/her own character. This means that dice are not necessary. Free Form gaming involves cooperation between the players toward the shared goal of creating the best story possible.

What Are The Rules?

There are no rules, but there are guidelines.

1. You are the only one who can control your character.

2. Keep your own feelings separate from your character’s.

3. Be careful to separate what you know from what your character knows.

4. Do not call the results of actions on another player’s character without consent.

5. Do not alter the setting without permission of the one who created that setting.

How do I create a character?

A lot of people think this is a tough question, but it really doesn’t have to be. Just use your imagination. First, decide what kind of genre you want to participate in. e.g., High Tech, Historical, or Fantasy. Then cover the basics, is the character male or female or both or neither. Give the character a name and the beginnings of a personality and a history.

A lot of new players make the mistake of putting too much detail into a new character. Just sketch out the details at first. That way, you have a lot of room to let the character develop itself as you play.

1. A character is real when they are not aware they are a character. Nothing makes a character look two dimensional to me faster than seeing them make a reference to something OOC (Out Of Character). That includes mentions of players or muns, IMsects or IM hazes, the AOL gods, etc.. As soon as I see any of the above, the character is reduced to a name on the monitor and nothing more.

2. A character is real when they have signature habits and expressions. For example, Beth has a habit of tilting her head to the side when she is confused. Characters who know her have seen that gesture and know what it means. They respond to it by explaining themselves further without me having Beth ask for clarification.

3. A character is real when they respond to the world around them. If someone throws a glass against the wall with a loud crash, the character responds by jumping, getting angry, smirking … something. Reacting to the things happening around your character can be difficult in a crowded room. But even if you have trouble keeping up, you can use the chaos of the room as a valid reason for why your character might miss something.

4. A character is real when they are flawed. The flaw can be a physical one such as a scar or a limp. It can also be a personality trait. Some characters are stubborn to the point of foolishness. Some faint at the sight of blood. Others must respond to any and all challenges.

5. A character is real when they are consistent. I lose respect for characters who change dramatically depending on who they are talking to. For instance, a demure woman who is shy while talking to a scholar, suddenly starts dancing on the table tops when interacting with a cyber punk, and then changes back again when a bard comes in.

6. A character is real when there is a detailed continuity of movement. Spice up your character’s actions. Which of the following characters seems more real to you?

Character A
::enters the room::

::walks to bar::

::sits::

Character B
::Enters the inn, pausing for a moment to glance over those gathered in this place.::

::Weaving between both patrons and tables, she makes her way to the bar.::

::She gathers up her skirts and settles comfortably onto a barstool::

7. A character is real when they have a history. This doesn’t mean you have to hammer out all the details of your character’s life before you play them, but you should at least have a vague sketch of their past at hand. A character will react to a certain situation based on his/her past experience. A world weary mercenary will react differently to the sight of a bleeding stranger than a wide eyed farm boy.

Some players put a lot of work into creating their character’s history. It’s natural to want to display your hard work, but resist the temptation. Most people will not spill their guts to a total stranger, so why should your character? Parts of your character’s history will come to the surface over time. Most of it will probably never be talked about. A finely crafted history gives the player a solid foundation for their character. It does not necessarily have to be shared.

8. A character is real when the player believes they are. While the player might guide the character in a certain direction by creating plot twists, it is the character who reacts to these events. I might decide to have an Orc break into Beth’s home and start trashing it. But Beth will react to that situation according to her own personality, not mine. I put a lot of work into developing Beth as a character. Now it’s time for me to step back and let my creation breathe.

Today, some of the truisms have changed. For instance, using colons to separate narrative from dialogue, while still the most predominant convention, is not so widespread that the use of other symbols is a distraction. Still, I think the overall theme of the articles is still relevant.

___________________________________________

Introduction

Why Won’t They Play With Me?

Over the years that I’ve patronized this forum (FFGF on AOL), I’ve seen this question asked, in one form or another, over and over again. I’ve gotten e-mail, IMs, and read posts — all asking why a player or players will not game with an individual.

Many of these people get their feelings hurt. That’s natural. They try to console themselves by calling players cliquish, snobs, or elitists. That’s natural too, but it’s not always true. I don’t deny that there are cliques out there. There are snobs and elitists. However in my experience, it’s usually something the player is doing that prevents others from gaming with them.

I’ve put together a series of posts on what I believe to be the most common reasons why some players do not game with others. This series is not comprehensive, but I think it might help.

As with most rules of thumb, there are exceptions. If someone does any of the things I speak against, and you are not having problems finding people to game with, I think it’s pretty safe to assume that you are an exception. Remember, this series was created to help players eliminate some bad habits that might be driving others away. It was not created to insult anyone. Your mileage may vary.

The issue of blending IC with OOC has been raised more times than any other topic in this folder. It sparks the hottest debates, and each player has their own definition of what is blending. There are almost as many levels of blending as there are people who blend. I’d be willing to bet that aspects of blending are the leading cause of divisions among players.For the benefit of readers new to Players Assisting Players, I’ll outline the most common types of blending.

Dragging OOC into IC:     I think this is the most visible type of blending. It can be seen at virtually any hour and in any room. Characters will make reference to something OOC. They will talk about their mun. They’ll mention being punted, logs, IMs, typos, etc. The character demonstrates that he knows he is not real. This type of blending shatters the shared illusion.

Players who display this type of blending will generally claim “it’s just a game,” and they think those who object should “just lighten up.” First, this kind of blending is considered room disruption and is not allowed in any forum sponsored room. People are free to do as they like in member rooms, but I don’t know anyone who will enter into a long term storyline with someone who shows so little respect for the illusion and his fellow players.

So, yes, you can mention muns IC if you want to, but don’t be surprised when all of your storylines seem trite. Don’t be surprised when no one takes you or your character seriously. You have to give respect in order to get it, and you have to take the game seriously if you want to do more than drink in inns and get married every two weeks. If you want to get something more, then you have to prove you are capable of giving something more.

Dragging IC into OOC:     If you look at the title of this post, then you’ll see an example of this kind of blending. You’re not exactly sure who is talking to you, the player or the character, and you’re not sure if they are talking to you or your character. Sometimes, people get so used to speaking as their character, they’ll occasionally slip and put the accent into their OOC communications. It happens.

But there are players who always speak with their character’s accent. They’ll even include the accent in their narrative descriptions.

::She ‘eld ‘er skirt up as she crossed tae the other side of the street, so as nae tae drag it in the mud::

Beyond the confusion factor, the chief problem of this kind of blending is that the player does not demonstrate she can successfully separate IC from OOC. This kind of thing sets off warning bells. People will avoid you just to prevent any possible problems.

IC is OOC and OOC is IC:     This is the most dangerous type of blending, because people get hurt in the real world. Despite the fact that this kind of blending is often the most difficult to spot, it is the existence of this kind of blender that causes virtually all blending to send more experienced players running for cover. If you’ve been here long enough, you’ve been burned by a dangerous blender.

There is very little difference between IC and OOC for these blenders. It doesn’t matter if the communication is IC or OOC, it’s one and the same for them. They take everything that happens to their character very personally. If your character slights theirs, they will blame the player for it. If their character loves yours, then they love you. If their character hates yours, then they hate you.

While it’s okay to take your roleplaying seriously, people are always more important than the game. That’s especially true for dangerous blenders. Personally, I will not enable their harmful delusions by interacting with them. That doesn’t mean I am unkind to them, it simply means I will not play with them. I will not reinforce their fantasy by playing along with it.

Using OOC gained information IC :     This type of blending happens most often among newer players. They will read a story on an IC board and then use the information they gained in their IC interactions with other characters. Their character will tell another something that happened in the story, and that character tells another, and so on. Pretty soon a lot of characters are talking about events that no one could have known about.

There is a misconception prevalent among newer players, that the IC boards are like bulletin boards, where characters write and display stories of their lives. The stories are there for the players to read. Your character can’t know about what happened in the story unless she was there, or someone who was there told her about it. Keep OOC gained information where it belongs, OOC.

Blending does not make you a bad person. Many blending habits are learned and perpetuated by the poor quality of play that is so often found in the public rooms. If you find that other characters seem reluctant to do more than chat casually with yours, you might want to eliminate those occasional mentions of the AOL gods IC.

Demonstrating good separating skills can only increase your potential gaming partners. Because while I have seen many players who refuse to game with someone who blends, I’ve yet to see anyone refuse to play with someone because they do not.

Ever get the above response when you send an IM asking someone to stop going OOC in the room? It’s happened to me so often that I don’t bother asking anymore. I just put the offending players on ignore and go about my business. I should mention that excessive OOC chat is not allowed in any forum sponsored room.

At some level or another, OOC chat becomes annoying to everyone. That level is going to vary from person to person. Some people don’t like any OOC chat. That includes ((Brb)) and ((Afk)). There are other ways to take a character out of play. You can have them leave the room for a moment, or you can have them drift off into thought. I’ll even allow a trusted gaming partner to play my character for me until I return.

Other people will tolerate a certain amount of OOC. While they might find ((Brb)) and ((Afk)) distracting, it’s certainly not enough to make them put someone on ignore. What really bothers me are ((Back)), ((Welcome Back)), ((::Walks in kicking punt beast::)), ((::Huggles Bethmun::)), etc., because it’s not necessary. Once you type into the room, we all know you are back. It’s really sweet that you want to welcome your friend back from his trip to the bathroom, but do it in IMs. You were punted? Well, so were about three other people. Keep it to yourself. You can huggle all of your friends in IMs; spare the rest of us.

Excessive OOC chat says a lot about the person doing it, and I’d bet that it’s not the message the chatter intends to give. It says that you don’t care. It says that your desire to chat outweighs the purpose for which the room was designed … roleplaying. It says that you have little to no respect for anyone or anything, but yourself, your friends, and your own selfish desires.

As with most things, a few bad apples really do spoil the whole bunch. While I put someone on a temporary, in the room ignore for OOC chat, I have a friend who ignores them permanently with PT. He’s not alone. Perhaps that person was just letting his hair down for that one night. Perhaps. But for my friend and many like him, you get only one chance.

If you feel the need to goof off a little, why not do it in IMs? Or if there are several people involved, go to a PR. It shows a lot of self-discipline and respect for the room and other players. On the other hand, if you regularly go OOC in the room, and you find that player you’ve been trying to interact with never seems to respond to your character, perhaps you’ve used up all your chances.

If you want to game with good roleplayers, you must strive to be a good roleplayer. Part of being a good roleplayer is demonstrating respect for the setting, the room, and your fellow players. A little bit of consideration for others can go a long way towards meeting new gaming partners. Save the OOC for IMs. You might be surprised at the difference it makes.

Sometimes, it’s not so much what you say, but how you say it. That’s especially true in this online world, where the written word is the only form of communication. Presentation is everything, and when it comes to writing, presentation means spelling, grammar, capitalization, and punctuation.

A lot of people are poor spellers, myself included. I think most players turn a blind eye to this as long as it doesn’t happen so often that it’s distracting them from what you’ve written. Grammar, while it may be an important factor to someone choosing a writing partner, most people will overlook it in the chat room. That leaves us with capitalization and punctuation.

I will freely admit that capitalization is a personal pet peeve with me. When people don’t bother to capitalize the word “I,” it irritates me. It strikes me as being the height of laziness when someone can’t even hit the shift key once to spell a one-lettered word. More than any other writing habit, I find failure to capitalize so annoying, that I don’t care what’s been written. In a chat room, people who do not capitalize are among the first to be ignored.

Perhaps my views are a bit harsh on this subject, but this is one area I cannot even force myself to be open-minded about. Always capitalize the beginning of a sentence. Always capitalize the word “I.” Always capitalize proper names. (One response to the original thread mentioned the convention of slaves to use lower case for their names, and of course that is a valid exception to this general rule of thumb.)

That brings us to punctuation. Most players will forgive a lack of proper punctuation in the chat room, with one exception. A sentence ends with a period, a question mark, or an exclamation point. It does not end with a series of periods, otherwise known as an ellipses, unless the sentence will be continued on the next line.

In my ten years of gaming online, I’ve only known one person who used the trailing ellipses correctly and consistently. In fact, he was so consistent with it, that on those rare occasions when he made a mistake, he had to IM the rest of us to let us know. “I’m not sure why I left that sentence trailing,” he wrote.

Overuse of the ellipses … is tedious at best … Some people believe … it looks like a … stream of consciousness … flow of words … but … actually … it’s just … annoying. There are other ways to separate thoughts, including commas, semicolons and a single period.

Try dressing up your self-presentation with some capitalization and punctuation. You might be surprised at the results.